Gold pan



E. O. C. 0RD

Feb; 6, 1923 GOLD PAN Filed Apr. 21, 1922 2 sheetssheet l E. o. c. ORD- GOLD PAN Fild Apr. 21, 1922 2 isheetsfiheet 2 Fatenterl Feb. 6, R923.

to SI nnWnn-n o. 0. one, or nnnxntnxcnrrronnmf corn 7 Application filed April 21,

5 T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that LEDWARD O. C. One, a citizen of the United States, residing at Berkeley, in the county of Alameda and State of California, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Gold Pans; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention,,such as will enable others skilled inthe art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My present invention relates to improvements inminers gold pans, and it is especially intended to provide a pan which will be efficient in the removal of the free gold from the sand, and economical in the use of water; and it is intended also to provide a pan which may be used either with the sand wet or dry as conditions may require.

As is well known, regions containing goldbearing sands, or gold bearing rocks which are crushed into sand, are often arid, and in such cases there is generally difficulty in securing'an adequate supply of water, and in such cases economy in the use of water is especially desirable, while in all cases it is, of course, important to separate as large a percentage as is possible of the gold or other valuable metal which is to be separated from the sand.

According to my invention I. provide a miners gold pan separated by a central par- ,tition into two chambers, the top of the par tition being some-what lower than the side walls of the pan so that the sand and water may be shifted from side to side'of the pan in the panning operation, as will-be hereinafter more fully described.

In addition tothe transverse partition justreferred to, I may provide one or more additional deflecting ribs, with one. or more pockets countersunk in the bottom of the pan to catch the heavier particles. and also to hold the amalgam when used; and I also may provide one or more trough-like guide rooves to permit the pouring out of the residue left in 'the pan.

My present invention relatesmore especially to animprovement on the construction shown in my Patent No. 1,4193%, granted June 13, 1922, and entitled Improvements in gold pans. l v

My-invention will be more fully understood after reference to the accompanying drawings, in which like parts are indicated PAN.

1922. Serial m. 555,883.

bysimilar reference symbols throughout the several views, and in which Figure 1 is a. plan view of the pan complete as ready for use.

Figure 2 shows a section along the line, D and-looking in the direction of the arrows. I I ,Figure 3 is a View of the'device shown in Fig; 1 asseen from the left of said figure. I

li 'igure 4 shows a section along the line 4l 1 of Fig. 1, and looking in the direction of the arrows.

Figure 5 shows section through the handle, the section being taken along the line 55 of Fig. 1, and looking-in the direction of the arrows; and; v

Figures 6 and 7 are similar views to Fig. 5, but show different cross sectional shapes of handle.

Referring to- Figs. 1 toff5, A represents in the form of a. fiattenedwedge, broader at each end than at the center, and having its upper edge 6 curved downwards towards the center and upwards at each end; the upper portion of saidgedge-b being at sufficient depth below the upper edge of the-outer wall of the pan to permit the flow of sand or water from one chamber A to the other chamber A without undue tendency oft-he same tospi-ll out of the panitjself'.

()ne end of the rib- B is flared outwards to form the curved ears 6 which,at theirj'unctlon 'Wlllll the bottom oft-he panfp rovide corners or pockets a inwhich the metal is vided with a hole '0". for convenience in hangin}; the pail-on a nail when not'in use.

Oppositethe' shovel G I prov-id a handle D which is rig-idly s'ecuredto the pan, and for convenience of operation this handle may be provided with a end, D

comprising the bent portions (Z and d which may be conveniently gripped by the hand of the user.

In addition to the parts just described I may provide on the interior of the pan one or more curved ribs E and E, which. are substantially in the form of an inverted V in cross section, and terminate at the point 6 adjacent to the middle rib B. These ribs E and E are in the form of curved horns with the concave side 0 next the central rib E, and the convex side 6 furthest from said central rib E. The said ribs E and E are symmetrically disposed as shown in Fig. 1. These ribs E and E may be stamped out of the metal forming the pan, or they may be made of separate pieces and secured in place by solderine or otherwise as preferred. Either or both of the curved ribs E and E may be omitted if desired.

In addition to the ribs j may provide a sunken trap F to receive the concentrate. This trap maybe stamped out of the metal forming the pan, or may be ap plied as a separate piece, as shown in Fig. l. Instead of the simple fiat form of handle shown in Figs. 1 and 2, I may provide a handle of different cross section, such. for in-. stance, as isshown at d and d in Fig. 6, or at d and d in Fig. 7.

7 It will be seen that the free end of the handle is provided with a resilient hand grip and by using the ribbed or flanged construction shown in Figs. 6 and 7, the stiffness of the handle may be made greater than where a simple flat metal strip is used.

In operation the shovel plate C facilitates the use of the pan in digging into the sand, and the handle D facilitates the operation of the pan both in digging into the sand and in the subsequent separation of the metal from the sand and water, or dry sand, as the case may be.

In operation the pan is filled with sand and is rocked from side to side, and given a swirling motion as well, and the shape of the various ribs facilitates the arresting of the heavier particles of the charge in the lower portion of the pan, allowing the sand and lighter particles to be conveniently removed and the concentrate is finally caught in the sunken trap, from which it may be removed in the usual way.

- lVhile have shown the pan as circular in shape, Wlth the side walls in. the form of a frustum of a cone, it will. be obvious that changes in configuration may be adopted in the shape of the pan and in the shape of the ribs contained therein. Moreover one or both of the ribs E and'E may be omitted if desired, and also the sunken trap; but I prefer to retain these features in order to have a device that will operate more efiiciently and economically.

For the intelligent operation of this pan ust referred to, I

the following method is pursued: A charge of the material to be washed in a granular form is placed in one side of the" divided pan. The pan is then inclined sli htly toward the opposite side and a gentle agitation applied. The sand is settled, the heavier metallic particles falling to the bottom, and as the agitation is continued the lighter sand is quicklv washed away and into the other side of the pan until only the heavy metal grains desired are left of the original charge. The pan during this operation is held by the handle. The handle enables reaching for and scooping up sand or gravel with ease and facility. When once charged with sand, this can be shifted all into one. side and then the water added.

The shovel-like projection is a point added to enable breaking through snow or any crust in order to get at the gravel beyond the surface and acts as=a pick point to get rid of rocks or other undesirable material in the way.

If the pan is of large size for large work, the shovel end serves as a pivotal support and the handle a lever for operation of the an. F Referring to Figs. 1 and 5, the curved rib B is used as a secondary concentrator of the tailings or lighter and washed out sands from the first washing, to ascertain if any losses have occurred of'the metals desired retained.

This rib B is also used for testing very small samples when a tablespoonful or two of water only would be required, thus conserving the water when prospecting in arid lands, or the desert regions of California.

The amalgam trap is of the peculiar shape shown in Fig. 4, and placed at the junction of the wall and the floor of the pan and is used, as its name implies, for trapping of the amalgam.

It will be obvious that these and'various other changes might be made which could be used without departing from the spirit of my invention, and I do not mean to limit the invention to such details except as particularly pointed out in the claims.

Having thus described my invention what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:-

1. A. miners goldpan provided with a rib extending transversely of the pan and separating the same into two oppositely disposed chambers, the said rib being substantially in the form of a flattened wedge having its ends flared outwards to form concaved ears, said rib terminating in a shovel blade at one side of the pan, and a handle extending outwards from the other end of said rib. v

2. A miners gold pan provided with a rib extending transversely of the pan and sepalVater is then put in to cover the sand.

hers.

rating the same into two oppositely disposed chambers, the said rib being substantlally 1n the form oi. a flattened wedge having its ends flared outwards to form concaved ears, said rib terminating in a shovel blade at one side of the pan, and a handle extending outwards from the other end of said rib, with a sunken trap near the outer edge. of one of said chambers.

A miners gold pan provided with a rib extending transversely of the pan and separating the same into two oppositely disposed chambers, the said rib being substantially in the form of a flattened wedge having its ends flared outwards to form concaved ears, said rib terminating in a shovel blade at one side of the pan, and a handle extending outwards from the other end of said rib, with a curved tapering rib wedge shaped in cross section provided in one of said chamet. A ininers gold pan provided with a rib extending transversely of the pan and sepa-' rating the same into two oppositely disposed chambers, the said rib being substantially in the form of a flattened wedge having its ends secured to the opposite side walls of the pan,

said rib terminating in a shovel blade at one side of the pan, and a handle extending outwards from the other endof said rib.

5. A miners gold pan provided with a rib extending transversely of the pan and separating the same into two oppositely disposed chambers, the said rib being substantially in the form of a flattenedwedge having its ends secured to the opposite side walls of the pan, said rib terminating in a shovel blade at one side of the pan, and a handle extending outwards from the other end of said rib, with a sunken trap near the outer edge of one of said chambers.

6. A miners gold pan provided with a rib extending transversely of the pan and sepa-- rating the same into two oppositely disposed chambers,.the said rib being substantially in the form of a flattened wedge having its ends secured to'the opposite side walls of the pan, said rib vterminating in a shovel blade at one side of the pan, and a handle extending outwards from the other end of said rib, with a curved tapering rib wedge shaped in cross section provided in oneof said chambers.

EDWARD 0.0. 0RD. 

